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BBC journalists to strike over jobs

Alan Jones

Making news: BBC Director General Lord Hall, right, with BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten will now have to deal with strikes at the national broadcaster. Photo: Getty Images

BBC journalists will stage a 24-hour strike on Monday in a row over jobs, threatening disruption to radio and TV news programs.

The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) says jobs are set to be axed across the corporation, including the World Service, BBC Scotland and the Asian Network.

The BBC said it could not speculate on possible disruption to programs.

Picket lines will be mounted outside BBC offices across the UK, including London, Cardiff, Glasgow and Birmingham.

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Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ general secretary, said: "NUJ members across the BBC are taking action to defend jobs and quality journalism at the corporation.

"They are angry and frustrated at the poor decisions being taken at the top of the BBC - decisions that are leading to journalists being forced out of their jobs and quality journalism and programming compromised.

"Instead of making sure that the redeployment process works properly in all areas of the BBC, managers are prepared to waste public money on needless redundancies and sacrifice the livelihoods of experienced and talented journalists, at the same time as advertising other jobs externally. It's particularly disappointing that the BBC has failed to engage meaningfully in attempts to resolve this dispute - an abdication of responsibility for a public service broadcaster."

A BBC spokesperson said: "We understand how frustrating and difficult situations involving redundancies can be, but it is disappointing the NUJ have chosen to take this action.

"We are working hard to ensure that we succeed in getting staff redeployed wherever we can and will continue to work with the unions to ensure that their members receive the right redeployment support."

The NUJ said 7000 jobs had been cut at the BBC since 2004, while a further 2000 are being lost under cost-saving plans.